Charles Miles Maddox was born on November 12, 1934, in Cincinnati, Ohio. His mother, Kathleen Maddox, alcoholic and prostitute, was sixteen at the time. When she married a man by the name of William Manson, Charles name changed to Charles Manson. His mother never really wanted children, so soon he was sent to a boys school. After running away, back to his mother, she still did not want anything to do with him. She left Charles to commit small crimes here and there to survive on his own.